After six months of coping with stop-gap funding measures, federal agencies have quietly started instituting hiring freezes, withholding grants and curtailing work on critical projects. The uncertainty caused by Congress' inability to pass a budget cuts across many corners of the government. (CNN/Money)
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Companies never want to see their merger talks leak, but AT&T Inc. was especially concerned. The former Baby Bell, which built itself up through a decade of acquisitions into the country's largest telecommunications company, was planning to buy T-Mobile USA, a deal that would test its skilled regulatory team in Washington. (Wall Street Journal)
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There is considerable buzz in the marketing industry over the recent release of the 2010 Census' racial and ethnic data – most loudly, among multicultural advertising agencies. And on the other side of the boardroom table, advertisers are undoubtedly reading and listening to various interpretations of what this means for their businesses.
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A series of studies in the burgeoning field of behavioral economics provide some insight into why managers seem to prefer handing out pink slips rather than lowering salaries. In experiments where workers were randomly assigned to receive wage cuts, they retaliated by slacking off. (Slate)
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"How do I develop my personal brand without sounding self-important and pompous?" and, "How can my brand be authentic if I'm tweaking it for different job opportunities?" (International Business Times)
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After the EU, US, and China, Japan has the fourth largest economy in the world. Japanese industry provides many of the high-tech systems that are essential for producing relatively low-tech products such as automobiles. Already the US computer industry is being affected by shortages of vital parts manufactured in Japan. (FXStreet.com)
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The Stanford University Graduate School of Business surpassed Harvard Business School for the top spot in U.S. News's 2012 rankings of Best Business Schools. (U.S. News and World Report)
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Western Governors University delivers online education at a fraction of the cost of for-profit players, and cash-strapped states are taking notice. (BloombergBusinessweek)
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Big consumer-products companies are going back to school. Businesses including Sprint Nextel Corp., Levi Strauss & Co. and Mattel Inc. are sponsoring college classes and graduate-level research to get help with their online marketing from the young and hyperconnected. (Wall Street Journal)
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From a purely business perspective, the horse-race is fascinating. This week, Microsoft and Google, both technology behemoths, are pitted against the small non-profit, and once Google benefactor Mozilla.(NPR)
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Inside Andrew Mason's plan to remake Groupon, fend off copycats, and change your spending habits forever. (BloombergBusinessweek)
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Is funding your startup with your retirement savings ill-advised or smart investing? Taking an early withdrawal from your retirement funds is not for the faint of heart. (Entrepreneur)
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As the U.S. economy recovers from the recent recession, so is charitable giving. In 2010, 43% of charities reported more contributions than in 2009, according to a survey (.pdf) conducted by the Nonprofit Research Collaborative ("NRC"). Of the charities surveyed, 24% reported approximately the same level of giving, while 33% reported a decline. (The Atlantic)
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Walgreen Co. plans to buy drugstore.com for $429 million, expanding the online presence of the world's largest drugstore chain. (Reuters)
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Delta Air Lines Inc. will slash seating capacity to Japan as much as 20 percent through May, while American Airlines reported a "modest" revenue decline after the March 11 earthquake and radiation leaks. (BloombergBusinessweek)
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If you live in a political battleground state, you probably remember being bombarded last year by TV attack ads — including ads from Citizens for Strength and Security, Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies, and other vaguely named entities. (NPR)
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The annals of business history are full of tales of companies that once dominated their industries but fell into decline. The usual reasons offered – staying too close to existing customers, a myopic focus on short-term financial performance, and an inability to adapt business models to disruptive innovation – don’t fully explain how the leaders who had steered these firms to greatness lost their touch. (Harvard Business Review)
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The day your best employee comes in with the news that they're moving on is the day you start recruiting them again. Here are a few things to keep in mind. (CNN/Money)
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